DAVID P. SCAER

In The Search For Cnjtr

I ~ I C H - A R D j . SCHULTZ

HESRY 1. EC:GOL.JI

Theological Refraction.;

1 i

Bmk Reviws

Book Reviews EFFECTIVE BIBLE S T U D Y . E Y Howard F. VOS. Zondervan Publishing

House, Grand Rapids, 1969. 224 pages. Paper. No price listed.

If one were simply to evaluate a book on the basis of the number of printings it has enjoyed, this l i t t le volulne without judicial scrutiny

r a n k arnong the favorites. (Since i t s first printing in 1956, five consecutive editions have followed.) IIowever, the reviewer has a few critical conllllents which h e would l ike to share. F i r s t , the author's presentation is not new o r s ta r t l ing fo r t h e trained clergy. The seventeen "nlethods" o r approaches a r e the daily working tools of every conscientious interpreter. Second, a s a "how-to" manual , the author fails to stimulate the reader by indicating hobv the various methods provide exciting dis- coveries f rom the text under s tudy. In a sense. i t is another "matter of fact" presentation tha t leaves t he reader with the impression that he didn't have to be told--what other gossihilities a r e there? Hut coupled with this criticisnl, tho reviewer was inlmediately impressed with the ~ossibi l i t ies it offers for shar ing with o r teaching Iaynlerl the various approaches t o Eible study. Perhaps this s tudy guide is the type of manual that many pastors a r e searching for, p r i ~ n a r i l y a s a n instructional aid for training Sunday School o r Eible Class teachers how lo approach a lesson or Bible text in order t h a t i t will provide t he incites necessary for the teaching situation. The development of t h e various methods (inductive. synthetic, critical, biographical, l i terary, sociological, psychological . . . to name a few) offers the reader with a definition of the particular method. an example, and suggestions for fu r the r s tudy . Any "hob--to" hook 1%-orth its saltt which instructs or,e in t he a r t o f learning, generally includes a chapter on ..how-to-teach". This o11r does ; but tlie author 's al~proach is worth noting. After criticizing sorlle of t he shop lvorn ap1)roaches. he buggests positive, workable niethods.

1 1 ~ 1 1 1 1 ~ 1 . 1 ~ ~ 3'. -1Ieger -- ~ . -

THE HOOK OF BOOKS. THE C;RUWTkI O F THE BIBLE. By Klaus Kloch. Westminster Press , Phi ladelphia, 1968. 192 pages. Paper. $2.65.

This volunie a1)peared originally in Germany under the tit le D t r u Bllc?) (lei Ruclier. Dip E n t . ~ t ~ ? r rrrr f/.syc'.~r'h it.htc ( 7 ~ 1 . IiibeT. pnhlished 'in 1963 by S~ringer-Verlag, Berlin-Gdttingen-IIeidelberg arid \\--as translated by 3fargaret Kohl. The au tho r of th i s brief capsule course In Bible study is a professor of Old Testanlent a: the Uni\-ersity of IiieI. Dr. Koch himself states in the conclusion (p . 174) : "Onr exl)loratiori of the biblrcal wrrtings is a t an end. I t could only be f racmentary . for only the N-ay to get to know the Bible properly is t o read it.'.

Six of the fourteen chapters deal wi th t h r Old Testarllent and 61s with the 3-ew Testanlent. There a r c a brief ir~tr.oductor>- arid a brirt concluding chapter, followed by a n al)prndix which Elves a chronology ot Ciblical dates. The purllose of t he volunic~ as the t i t le announces is t o show how the sixty six Biblical books came into e s ~ s t e ~ ~ c e a ~ l d became

the protestant scripture^. In his short book -,\-e h a r e the crystallization

of critical thinking on the manner in which the Bibie is alleged to haye

grown. ~ r , Klaus Koch is well known for his espousal of the fornl critical "lethod of interpreting Biblical documents. Koch Operates with

assunlption that Biblical l i terature was handed down orally from circa 1200 B.C. to the time of Solonlon the first Hebrew writing was corn. Dosed, the -J" document. According to the author t h e reader of the Old Testanlent does not find anything chat resembles reliable history in the old Testalllent until he comes to about 1200 B.C., t he tillle of the Occupation of the land and the formation of t he alliance of the Twelve Tribes. This Illearls that the whoIe history of Israel a s related in t h e Books of Exodus. Leviticus, Sumbers, and Deuteronomy, .Joshua, Judges is not considereij

:tuthentic nor reliable. ~n the Old Testament section of t he volume all s tandard criticaI posi.

tjorls are set forth. The Docuinentary hypothesis. Deutero-Isaiah, for:^ rrjtjc-1 conclusions about the Psalms, t h e Prophetical li terature, and Tis- do111 literature are presented. Daniel is a late second century apocalyptica!

honk. 1u the Sew Testament section critical theories a r e presented as fact .

Koch also eniploys form criticism when dealing wi th the Gospels. HP looks upon the. nliracle accounts a s embellishments of t he early Christiar, cnmnlunity. In the light of the Eas ter fai th, t he disciples ascribed to the 11re-Easter pclriod sayings to Jesus which H e actually never uttered. Tht. author of john's C o s ~ e l lived in t h e post apostolic period (after 100 A.D.1 operating with different presuppositions than those held by the Jerusalcn: Churrh. Peter was not the author of t h e two epistles tha t the Biblical test nsc.1-ibrs to 11in1. Of the thir teen epistles that t h e S e w Testamen: attributtxs to Paul, Koch will onIy allow: Romans, I and I1 Corinthians. (;;jlatians, Philemon and Philippians.

This reviewer does not believe tha t many of t h e data submitted in this hook are true to the facts -of Biblical history and of BibIicaI revelation

HOLY ROOK A S D HOLY TRADITIOI";. Edited by F . F. Bruce and E. (; R u p p . IViiliam B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids 19);s. 244 pages. Cloth. $3.95.

F. F. Bruce and E. G. Rupp edited th is book. containing the paper> 01 the Illternational Colloquium, which "was held i n the Faculty of Theolo~-?r of Nanchester University to consider, in i t s widest range. t h y

i n t e r ~ l a v of sacred writing, oral t radi t ion and religious a r t from the earliest tiiiies to our own. A number of scholars f rom the Continent co-owrated in this exercise with scholars from other par t s of the British Isles and with members of the Manchester Faculty of Theology" (Sunlmar!' from the jarket) .

The subject matter of the various presentations concerns itself with the interplay and relationship between t h e influence exerted by tradition

on the ultimate development of t h e wri t ten (sacred) record of particular

Book Rrrie~vs - - . -- - -. - - ~ 4 1 --

religions. This prohlenl is historically traced, a s i t develops, through [he Egyptian, Iranian, Hebrew Gr Jewish, and Christian (ancient church

tradi t ions) rcllgions: the Middle Ages and Luther; t he I,,odern British Church; Catholic Theology; Orthodox Theology; Islamic; ,u,d present day frontiers. E\-c:n though each presentation concerns itself ,,.,th a singular subject, t h e historical development is obviously recognized aud provides the reader with a kaIeidosco1)ic view of the interaction be- t,veeu the "Holy Tradition" and tke "F10ly Book" a s they develop the re:igiou~ principles for a given era and area. Perhaps the 111ost significant contribution or marked impression this book will leave with its reader is that every "holy book" i s preceded and developed by a "holy tradition", ,vhich "receives its original authentication frolll persons already accepted

being peculiarly endowed wit11 a nulrlinous prestige and authority" from a particular columunity or society. S o "holy book" was ever del-el- oped in isolation from the individuals who considered it sacred; nor did a -holy tradition" eyer exist. which continued a s an influential force \\-ithin a conl~ilunity or society. without producing a written record for its advocates.

This book is recommended for the individual searching for scholarly detail and minutiae relative to any one of the above mentioned subjects. JIany of the l>resentations quote freely fro111 Hebrew. French, and Lat in [ests. without any possible meaning or understanding for the "uninitiated". Hoaever, the diachroriic s tudy of the influential i n t ~ r p i a y between tradi- tion and writing (recording) is significant for al l religious leaders.

l17illin?n E'. ~Meyer

THE DEAD SEA SCROLLS AXI) T H E BIBLE. By Charles F. Pfeiffer. Raker Book House. Grand Rapids, 1969. 152 pages. Paper. $2.95.

A noted scholar once suggested tha t some authors a r e capable of ~.,roducing more mileage out of a single subject t han most autonlobile dr~vers are iron1 a "good" gallon of gasoline. Any s tudy of the Dead Sea Scrol!s today, which does not approach t h e subject fro111 a new perspective 11s Investigate a part icular problem in greater depth than previously, nlust 'je placed in such a category simply because to the making of books on :he Dead Sea Scrolls t he re seelns to be n o end! Howeyer, without being h!-l~rcritical, it must be said in defense of our au thor t ha t this publication :- an enlarged edition of The Dead S F I ~ S(7?-02Zs. first published in 19.57.

If one is in search of a succinct presentation of the historical and interpretative background to the Dead Sen Scrolls, Pfeiffer provides the reader with just such a n edition. I t s pr imary significance is evident in !he author's attempt to interpret this l i terature in relationship to the Biblical and Christian fai th, providing t h e reader with a useful com- :"tntary that will enlighten his interest in the historical derelopillent of religious ideas.

The author suggests in his preface t h a t this s tudy is designed a-s an

'"rod~ction to archaeological research for the layinan and students. The

rcyie,ver suggests that for those who have read a n y studies in this area pre,.iouslv, this one \rill not add anything sllbstantially significant.

Willinnt F . Meye,.

1 0 ~ ~ THE C~IPTIST AS U'ITSESS AND MARTYR. BY Marcus L. Loanr Zonderyan p\lblishing House, Grand Rapids, 1968. 122 pages. cloth

S o price .given

A, page the author correctly seeks to describe the baptizer i n rms of his relationship to Jesus a s the promised Messiah. So promillent the ~ h ~ i ~ t ~ l o g i c a I eli~phasis throughout the book tha t one fails to recall

sc.t.inc . ) o i l l l ' ~ name mentioned even once between pages 39 and 62. Thai 1 h ~ s e particular pages contain an excursus on the tenlptation of our Lord 1\\hirh some ,nay regard as puzzling "filler" ill a hook claiming to be abooi . j ohn) is q u i t ? in keeping with John's own stated ~ u r ~ o s e : "He mus[ Irlcrease, b ~ ~ t 1 ri~lrst decrease."

The author stares that the Greek llregositions in Mk. 1 : 10 and hit. 3116 ~va\.e tllp pre(:ise n~ethod by which John baptized our Lord a wide opt.1; clu~stion. \\-icked Herodias was probably the wife of Philip, a half-brothel of Hersod Xntipas who resided in Roliie (not the wife of Philip, tetrarcl; of Iturca and T~.acho~ii t is) . E ~ e n nlore useful is Loane's description of 1)arallrls between the life and niinistry of John and another fanlous wilder- ness preacher. Elijali the Tishbite.

Thc author is 1)erliaps most convincing in his discussion of the highly ilii~rortant sec:riorls in >It. 11:2-6 and Lk. 7:19-23 with reference to John as :I. ~,r i sonrr sending- two of his disciples to Jesus to ask whether or not IIc \I. i1.G 1ntlt.c.d 1 h c ~ Slrssiah. Loane states:

Scril~rurr does not conceal the failure or weakness of His finest servarrts. atid John is shown a s the prey of doubt and disapgointment I>(! was do\vnrast ill niind, unsure in fa i th , prone to despair. . . . Jesw

collie rv ~ i i ak r all things new. but the axe was not yet laid to [he 1'1)ot o f t 1 1 t h t rtbcb.

.after :~lludin; i o t lie familiar words of Isaiah 35: 3-6, Jesus tells the t\vii csl1lisunric?s tn return to John with these additional words: '.And blessed 1. h*, whoever IIiis not been offended a t ?uIe!" I t is in these pages esgeciali!' [h;ct the nulllol.'s literary style is strongly rellliniscent of the profonnc'. ~~:lssiull lrioivgy by I\'laas Schilder.

(-'eLrt:lin Christians fixld it difficult to admit even the possibility of doubt i l l llle 11i.al.t and niind of olle who had been designated by God to Sa!- of .frsus. '.liellold the L a ~ n b of God who is in the process of taking a\va!. ( 1 1 ~ sill of the ~ o r l d ! ' ' Sonie allnost see111 inclined to prefer to think tha t ( ' I I I ' Lord \\.as lrlaying ganies with John's disciples when He said, "you .?o tell Johjr . . . ." 3lany see the 1.eal issue here a s being one 011 innel' (:llrisrian ct 'rtaint~ instead of a nlore objective 111alady of lack of c o n l ~ ! ~ ~ ~ rl'ust i l l the 1)rolnises of God in Christ. Mre so easily forget that SoIne of those clnsest to the Lord doubted or were afraid even a f t e r His resurrec. lion from t h e dead (hIt . 28:16f.: Mk. 16:8).

The book contains a ntimber of factual inaccuracies. For example, John was a eontenlvorary of our Lord, Lk. 3:23 clearly refers

Jesus and not to John (p . 8 ) . JIk. 1: 15 does not belong with Mt. 3 : 6 aud Lk. 3 : 3 a s words spoken by John (p . 9 ) . The distinction drawn between [he Christological titles "Son of God" and "Son of man" (p. 43) is mis-

leading. Finally, perhaps a word ou.rht to be said about a certain redundancy

!, [he book's title. Although Christians today remember "martyrs" as those who haye died, a S e w Testament ~)~,al'tzts like John is one who testified with his l i f e .

Kenneth M . Hallas

KHAT CAK WE KXOW ABOUT JESUS? Essays on the New Quest. By Ferdinand Hahn. Xenzel Lohff and Giinther Bornkann. Translated by Grover Foley. Fortress Press, Philadelphia, 1969. 86 pages. Cloth.

1 $7.75.

So corpse has been exhullled more t imes in the last half-century than [he corpse of the quest for the historical Jesus. Bornkann very aptly states ;hat after Albert Schweitzer in his farnous Qzcest fo l - t he Histoi-ic'nl Jesus I!nd removed all of the eighteenth and nineteenth century portraits of Jesus iron1 rhe wall, he pronlptly puts up his own. While all deplore the activ- iiies of Schweitzer and his predecessors in looking for the "historical :esus", the quest is a temptation which none of the essayists can them- selves avoid. I t is the original sin of the S e w Testanlent exegetes which :hey deplore in everyone else but always seen1 quite acceptable in them-

quest like 211 of the others is ~ i r c u l a r ill i ts path and a s if determined by fa te i t leads right back to Sch~veitzer for ~ v h o m Jesus was the Unkno\,.l, One. This type of quest should haye bptzr! g iven U P i f for no other reasori than it h a s been so obviously unsuccessful to r ~ z c h i n s i t s goal. So matter how nlany tillles the corpse is ~ ~ h i u l l ~ d . the body !)!.ores to be dead pyp,.!.

time. Dl lT i~ i P. S I ~ , ~ ~ ~ .

THE FCTURE O F THEOLO(;Y. By Frederick Sonlag. \Vestminster pre9s Philadelphia, 1969. 155 pages. Cloth. 84.95.

The question of the relations hi^) het\\-eeli ~)hiIosophq. and theology he, been perennially ac t i re and solnetii?los t?sasgeratin$ oon t(to answer, 1,; recent years it has assumed a llluce in Protestant theological thouS1;: \I-Iiich was for~iierly reserved a l l l lo~t exclusively for Roinan Catholi , . theology. In his book, subtitled "A P!iilosoyhicul Basis for ConteliiI)oraj.!- Protestarit Thought." Professor Sontag, who has been visiting professor ,,: p11ilosol)hy a t St. Anzelnio College in Roii?e, discusses this qriestion \yhici- he clainls is a universal 1)robleln jn Christiari thought. He also takes the question of the ~?ossihilitp for :I dist.iilcti\-ell>7 Anierican approach I,, theology a s well as the ecunlenic.al question of t he relationship of Pro:p~. tant and Konian Catholic: theologies. 111 tlie author 's mind these quesi in~~. a r e tied together by the view that the: philosophical basis iie~ded iu ! Protestant theology liiust 1)e rea!istic, pluralistic, and open to lien pos5i- hilities. I t has often apl~eared that Protestant ism took its philosophica: basis, i f indeed i t had a n y , for granted. So\\- i t nus st. reexamine i r z position and seriously a s k what kind of pliilosol?hy i t needs for its r!\\'!: justification. To assume that a certain philosophy has been dictated r o theology o r to believe that theology has no ghilosophy a t all is tlie \ v o I . ~ ~ conceivable state for theolngy to be i n , says Sontag. Frtrther111ol.e. :- yhiiosoy~hy cannot he accepted which would either require belief or guar ailtee answers with a necessity which is beyond a11 doubt. Sor do \vt. ~ i e e d a philosophy that. sinlpl?. by its very assur l i~ t ions lead US ilievi:ab:! to ~ )a r t i c r~ i a r ly Christian conclusions. Sontag examines the phi:osopl!y sources \vhich a r e available to theology. Leaning rather h e a ~ i l y on Jilh!' *Llacquarrie's book "Twentieth Century Reliaious Thought: The Front:cri

of P h i l o s o ~ h y and Theology," he t races such philosophical inoveliiell~~ ;;- esistentialisni, phenomenology. process llhilosophy, British analytic ~)h i ios - ophy. various historical theories, ethical approaches, idealisnl and l]ra!W- tism. a n d the philosophy of history a n d culture. These a re the (Vtionj available for theology. He maintains t h a t no philosophy by itself reslricl. cne's freedon1 of choice; the situation iil our day allows euery for use in t h e future. Sontag himself correctly feels that no one ~llilosol~~! can do everything. In fact, i t rnay be a currerlt theological luistake t c take hold of sonle particular philosophy too exclusively. Sontag suGeir' tha t to be electic is not necessarily t o be unphilosophical. This m a y exactly the kind of process fro111 which a new form of philosoph? theological alignment can arise.

I After carefully r:xanlining ir.l12t we need for a theology ;ind what kind

,i philosophy car1 he pro\-ideil, the au thor launches irlro a discussion on lvhcther Protestantis111 is nweesari ly ailtiphilosophical. The issue of the

relation of philosophy t o I?ihlic'a! irlterpretation leads to a spirit which is (.llarncteristic of I'rotestantisnl, nnlncly, thc atteml)t to recapture some- []ling of the original tha t ha s been obscured 01. lost. Since the aim of

protestantisnl is always to free the Christiarl lllessage from distortion. tes test ant ism has a certain natural bent toward philosophical skepticism.

this does not lllcail rhai Protesiantislll lllust reject all philosophy. protestantism has sometimes been gui l ty of heconling antitheological; i t

'

has also become entangled i n unnecessary intellec,tualisn~. Today it appears [!:a[ Protestantisnl is niost do~n ina t ed by philosophical assumptions, some nf \vhich are highly cluestionable. (\Yhile t h e author does not refer to it ,

hi. certainly could make inuch of tho philoso~)hic.al bias brought into con- :elnporary I-'rotestant tlleo!ogy by Tillich a n d Bultmann).

This book has some ver3- SLI-night fo rward and necessary things to say to contenlporary thcologj-. Like it 0:- not, philosophy is here to stay.

! 'The attempt to achieve a ; i i o d ~ [ : .

famous Sem!er. For the most part Rationalisln in Germany had a trad:.

tional bent in that it nlaintained the categories of the former Orthodoly Rationalisnl separated theological t ru th froill total dependence on th t Jesus revealed in the Bible, thus lcadilig into the frui t less and devastatinp historical search for Jesus in the llilleteentll century. This it did b:.

separating .'Christv or theology from the actual record of history i, th; Bible. Few histories of Christian thought a re a s readable as this oIlt L)r. n a w e is sufficiently acquainted with the ternlinology of Lutheran a!,r; Refornied Orthodoxy so as to give a balanced Judgment. Readers colll. nlitted to the Illore traditional terminology and theology will particnlZri! appreciate this work, since the exact breaking points a re indicated, D~ nawe points out the various inconsistencies ill all of the positions, *A \-aIuahle service has been rendered theology. a s this a rea is a gap [I:, tl~eological training of many pastors.

Dnrid P. Srn,-,- -- --

THE \ \ ' O R ~ OF GOD -4KI) TRADITIOS. Historical Studies InterpreL;!-.c the Divisions of Christianity. BY Gerhard Ebeling. Translaied i,! S. H. Hooke. Fortress Press, Philade11)hia. 1968. 272 pages. Clari: $3.40.

The author's position is given in the early going. a s he sets a; -1.- distiuction between what iiiay be received as t rue and nieaningiu: ,: Scripture and what niay be disniissed a s lacking real historicai l a c t ~ c ; i i

At the core . . . and implicit i n t he German word .Geschirlitc.' i. !!.. dialogue between the objective event in the past and the subjet;:!. understanding of the past event in the present . . . The Church hi: tarian. according to liis existential understanding of the subject-marre, to be deaIt with, must adopt a standpoint which brings him in:; relation with the event . . . In his encounter with history (GPI .c~I~~. ! I ' * man learns to understand himself . . . I n respect of history f H i . s t ~ ~ ~ . : t as such . . . relativisnl and scepticisni a re more appropriate attirrrdt- . . . Sowliere in history nlap we recognize (God's) Yea and His Xi.! . . . nowhere. . . save in Christ, in His Word.

Structurally the greatest witness of Ebeling's work is what is conilllil!, t o lllaily collections of essays delivered at different times and under d l i f~ : ent circulllstauces--re~)etition, wordiness, and a sonletilnes lack of clarlr!. Theologically the chief weakness is the failure, all too 0: nlucll of ~noderii theology, even when i t t r ies to be evangelical. of c l i i a r : ! and Scri l~tural ly defining what is meant by "Jvord of God." In thr f i n 3 analysis Ebeiing's problenl is the sanle a s his nlentar's, 13ultmaan. r h r deniaI of the objective, ontological t r u t h and validity of Scripture irze;: and tha t which i t contains. True, he does not side with Rult~nann at [hf point where the latter judges the Biblical text to be virtually urmecrsssr! fo r fai th. But he is a t one with him in adopting a reductionist (den~!-thoi- gizing) technique in spelling out "truth" as tha t which is sonieho~~ ( 'x : tured within our own felt experience of faith, our own existence. T h r

articles of faith then become plastic in the service of the new humanis".

Hook l~cvicivc 4 7 - -- - - - -- -- - - -- --

/

,,.hicb is geared to the hernleileutics of existentialism; the text does not us anything objectively but nlerely sets us going in the highly subjec-

[ire process of self-understanding and meaningful existence today. To ~ b ~ l i n g soln ~\'c.?.ipt'u~.u has t o do with the Word of God only to the extent ;!,at it is or becomes G o s ~ ~ e l to us now. Again and again he raises the ,!upstion .'whether Church doctrine, even so-called pure, orthodox doctrine, ,,,y n3t be a hindrance to the Word of God" by being "confused with the \rord of God." Instead of clear-cut testinlony to the notcre purcle of the ~ i ~ o r c h (Word and Sacranlents purely taught and administered) as neces- sary for the Church's life and work, Ebeling. like many others in our day,

arubiguously of the "Word."

His historical review of Confessional development in the Church and in ~l!,~rch history is valuable, a s is also his challenge of Kiisemann's thesis :hat early Christianity harbored varying "confessions." One of Ebeling's ;;enrcst chapters evaluates 3lariological dogma within the Roman church. 1s another chapter, on priesthood, he touches one of Christendonl's sorest ;;lots in connection with the doctrine of the Church. In treating of Christ 2s Priest and Sacrifice, however, and of God as the source of reconciliation :there is a proper reference to 2 Cor. 5, 19!), Ebeling unfortunately, like .u Illany theologians coinillitted to existentialistic theologizing, avoids all :he basics in the Christian Gospel, specifically the reality and perfection of Christ's propitiatory work in behalf of sin and sinners. As a result. and a t .-IS point, Ebeling's eiilphasis upon "\\lord-event" sounds like sheer mysti- :i?rn, The objectivity of the \Vord of God embraced within Scripture's :::!:its and clarity gives way to ~ i o n s . arnbi\-alent. obscure subjectivism,

, . . i ~ : ; ~ h in the end leaves s a l ~ a t i o n in man's own hands.

.; SE\V LOOK 9 T T H E APOSTLES' CREED. Edited by Gerhard Rein. hngsburg Publishing House, Ninneapolis, 1969. 87 pages. Paper. $1.23.

This book is a translation of Das GEuuBensbekenntnis. edited by Ger- :~?rd Rein and was origirially published in Stut tgart , Germany in 1967. The '-mlator n a s David Le Fort. This little volume contains contributions on 1 : sta!ements of the Apostles' Creed together with an introductory essay :.! \Yalther von Loewenwich.

The essays found in this small book were originally presented over the ' ' l~th German Radio, as part of a series entitled "In Defense of Thinking." ::h'h Contributor is supl~osed to have dealt wi th two questions: to what ,:\:rnt each section of the Creed was authentic, and how can the various C:~~!rillal assertions be made relevant to ~ l iodern man. Rein's statelllent :* f i l t t he methodology employed should be instructive to the reader. H e .::',[e: .. With great freedom they begin from the point tha t the Creed, , .

r"ll f r om the start , mas interpreting the biblical tradition and that it -. '.-:."fore can and must be interpreted further." The various authors did " '

.')! "tempt to show the relationship of the various statements to the plan ;' Q!yation. Since the va r io~ l s statements of the Creed were forniulated ".""renturies ago, it is claimed that it now behooves Christians to try

to lllake these doctrinal assertions ~-c j t :~ i \ -e f(;r Loda!; by restating , ,

tha t modern man will not be offended b? the~?i . I n defense of a new and modern inte!.p:.eiatioll of the chrisi j tn

Church's oldest creedal statement is the assert.ion "that faith mujt distinguished from the recognition of so-called historicat events'' (p , l!! Loewenich seenls to favor the demvthologizat.ion of objective staceme!,Li which are necessary for him a s a n erponellt of ( ?~ i s t en t i a l i s~n . The ripostjjC. Creed as a confessional statelnent should not. be taken literally. hut

ought to be able to inter1)re:t. i t subiectively.

Christians, whether RollIan Catholic, Greek Orthodox, or Protestan:s \\-ill find vie-7~ here that niake [he use of the Apostles' Creed act\lai;:,

unnecessary. There is no indicstion in the 1.olurne tha t the Triune (.;oa is the only true God. a ~ o s i t i o n to which all historic churches of Chri5tt:,. dolll hare 3lany of the contributors. if not most, makt. r.i attenlpt to establish the statelaents of t l i ~ Creed 011 the basis of Scripro:l., data, but resort to l~hiloaophy, specnl;~tion and reason to set forth :yi;e. they belieye a certain phr-ase of the Crec?tf shou:d Illean.

Bernhard Gloege, in his discussioll of t he phrase that clearly .ny. "horn of the \,-irgin Mary," defended the view tha t a Christian need r.c,: accept the Virgin 1:irth of Jesus Christ. Jiirgen AIoltn~ann does nol I ~ c - i i ~ ; ~ that Christ descended to the place of t he danlned, but explains the idcn ,I,: hell as consisting of those infernal conditions and situatio~ls that I!;:: creates here on earth. Giinther Eornkamm does not believe that the ('ilris: who was crucified. arose bodily from tho dead. Anton Vogtle, in conl:~~?::: ing 011 the words "He ascended into hear-en . . ." asserted: "But this ~ q : i ? , not be a liternl report of the occurrence, you say. I n reality. it is mi~.i-:y 2. figurative er~)ression for a n event which essentially defies desrript!i':. ipp. 51-52). The statenlent dealing with the session and coming i : ~ t i i . n ~ c n t is said by Hans Conzelmann t o be the least satisfactory doc[!.:n~. rl; the creed ip. 57) .

The statenlents of the Third Article f a r e just a s poorly in t h ~ !ii.:i nieaning given the various confessional s tatements of the Creed. I!i : I ) - discussion on the forgiveness of s ins , nothing is said about the 1ror.l; ;.! Christ and the need of accepting Chris t as Savior. Eterna: life does r.cr include a life beyond the grave a n d a n etljoylllent of the beautific yi>i:-:: of the Triune God.

\\'e take it that this book is intended not only for the cler:?. hs:r :ilso for the Iaity. I Iere is a volunle which, even though it contain.? 'h- writings of some of the greatest theologians of Europe, can only iil;bd:-t doubt and confusion in the rninds of the lai ty; i t certainly CanUC! i:p:in the parish pastor in set t ing forth t he RiblicrLl teachings once e n u n ~ i ~ ' ' ~ by the Apostles under the guidance of t he Holy Spirit .

Rnynzo)ld . i '~l . i 'bl i! ':;

THE BIBLICAL DOCTRINE O F HEAVEK. By Wilbur $1. Smith. :lac':! Press, Chicago, 1968. 317 pages. c lo th . $4.95.

The narlie Wilbur 31. Sulith is one tha t will he famili:rr Lo :::z:,:, - .. s readers. He has served on the faculties of jloody Bible Institurt. :..8L

i F~~~~~ ~ h ~ o l o g i c a l Seniinary. At the present time he is Professor Emeritus ,[ ~ ~ ~ l i s h Bible a t Tr in i ty Evangelical Divinity School. Perhaps he is

know11 among lay,71en a s the editor of Pelozhbet's Select Notes. In the introduction to his book, Dr. Smith points to the unfortunate

lack of attention given to the important doctrine of heaven. While many ,erlllons have contained stern warnings against a future day of reckoning and the flames of hell, comparativelv few have dealt with the promised ;,,, of heavenly rest. This is no less t r u e of books and other printed ,aterials If eschatology a s such lias been neglected in recent years, the doctrine of heaven has received even less attention. With this present ,-o;lllue, Dr. Smith at tempts to assist in filling the need for readable laterials on this in11)ortant subject. AS a result he has produced one of

most exhaustive hooks known to this reviewer on the Biblical doctrine

(,f heaven. He treats a great variety of Scripture passages and makes elailable to the reader comments of nnnlerous other scholars.

The Lutheran reader nlay not agree with all of Dr. Smith's views +nce the author appears to be c o n ~ n ~ i t t e d to a n~illennialistic interprets-

i - tioll of sonle of the Rihle passages: however, both laymen and pastors can Benefit from a reading of this interesting book.

Hozc-al-(1 Ti7. Tepke?-

.IFSTIFICATIOS O F THE IJSGODLY. By Wilhelin Dantine. Concordia Publishing House. St. Louis, 1968. 173 pages. Cloth. $5.95.

~t a. tinle when much attention is centered on the practical side of rhristianity, rather than on faith and Biblical doctrine, it i s refreshing and stimulating to collie upon a book such as Dantine's which concerns itself b\.ith the very heart and center of Lutheranism. namely, justification by faith.

In the preface to his book the author expresses deep concern over the !2ct that among evangelicals who regard the orthodox formulations of post- Refonnation times as ~ ~ o r ~ ~ l a t i r e and wish to preach correct doctrine in szrmons, "hope is declining of gaining fro111 the traditional doctrine of .':istification the bread of life." Many a r e experiencing "something like ireariness of this mail] article of our faith." As a result "faith in justifica- rioll is being pushed, in increasing measure, from the center of ecclesiasti- i.ai life to its periphery." Wha t is more, " the understanding of the founda- Lions of the evangelical fai th is hardly uniform among ex-angelical theo- :()5ians." Disturbed by such conditions, Dantine seeks to present to the reader a strong, Scripture-based defense of the doctrine of justification of

W ~ d l y . He is persuaded that wherever there is the courage "to fill faith in justification fro111 the fullness of the GospeI and to place it in

:hr center of the church and of hunlali Iife a s such. this faith once again l'roves to be a life-giving center."

The author has divided his book into three parts: 1. The Doctrine of Jtlstification in Orthodox Lutheranism and in Roman Catholicism; 2. Justi- "ation of the Ungodly according to the Testimony of Scripture, and finally, ' Justification of the Cngodly as a n Article of Fai th . In this lat ter part

D a n t i n e ilI)plies: justification to the l l res r l l t -da~ sitllatioli, suggesting

t i c a l in \vhich this important doctrine Call in fact beeollle - , ' F r of Christian Theolo~y.

~h~ 1)ook is written from a conservative Euro1)ean point of \.ieiV. i r

f a r Inore ~ ~ ~ s e r v a t i \ ~ e than many other w01-k~ produced a t the present t . lnie

by cont ina ta l theologians; howeverl it represents a theological .;oll,e\%.hat less conservative on Inany poirlts t han the position held by (.,,. fessional theologians in the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, hi^ h+ colllrs aIlp;irent already in the illtroductioll iVhen he s tates certain of h;. I,rcsllDI~ositiot~s. concerning Lutheran orthodox^. Dantine writes: TI:^^^ .;.i,uld be no doubt that of all theological syst,ellls highest praise is dl,? : r ; that ,>f Llltheran orthodoxy in the issue under discussion. . . . 011 the r,[h;2r h21nd,- I;)alltine says. "the daniage from which t h e doctrine of justifitatio, e \ - t , ry \ sher~ suffers also finds exl)ressions here ill l>articular obsrlur;.,,;, , l l an l~e r . Therefore, our concern cannot be just to let the early ortlicldol (joctrjllp g;o\i- again with i ts old radiance. . . . Instead it will be neyssar!

prillciplc to subject t he classical Protestant doctri~ic? of justification ro c.ritic:ll review in its earlier as \veil as Iater forms." nan t ine thpn l,ro:le,d5 [ ( I d o just that. He finds nnlnerolls wraknesses in the orthodox doctrint. i;f irlstific.atio~l. Among his tilore severe criticislns a r e these: 1. Ile finds i , r . rllodosy setting forth n stel'ile doctrine of justification: 2. In his c , l , i l l j i . n , o lqhod~sy also failed to make justification the center of Christian ~ht.o:,;g!- 111~tead of ;lll~\ving it to permeate the whole of theology, orthodos!.

Book Rcvic~vs - - -

5 1

,l,cludes with a clear ril!ging answer': There is perfect harnlony between ,,price alld Scripture. If there are t rue conflicts between the answers in -I 3

:euce and the teachings of S c r i ~ t r l r e , the answer of science is wrong. TWO .. . ; [ j le five chapters deal with the evidence for evolution. In chapter 4, I)r.

discusses the matter of whether or not a scientist can accept the ,,.,p,cilings of Scriptures. Tllc answer is definitely: yes. "There are thou-

in Alllerica alone who testify that they believe the Bible. A large .....,,bel- of these are nienlber's of the .;in!,f rirtrn Scientific Affi l int ion . . ." .:.dl

:\ 2). In his concluding chapter, Dr. Sears describes the differences between

.:,, believing and unbelieving scientist. F o r many scientists the miracles , ; ( h e Bible are a stumbling block, because they believe that miracles inter- ;,, ,ith the orderliness of na ture and with the function of natural law. To ,.,!ion. for the miraculous would mean tha t the scientist could not depend -.. rile reliability of nature. To the objection of the scientist to the super- ;+lllal the author answers: "Hut the Christian believes that the same ,... .,d \lvho, through his natural laws has provided the dependability of -;.~~lre, can, at his ow11 discretion, dip in to tirile and produce an effect" ;~, 9 2 ) .

Science and Christianity each has its own sphere. Science has given ,:.?n numerous blessings. But science cannot answer the following ques- ..,?IIS: From whence did man come? Where is illan going? What purpose ., :.,v. ,-. 111an's life have? How ought man to live? Where will inan end? Only

:., Ilil~le answers these questions. h 'oymond F. Surbur(/

11TTHOLOGY O F SCIESCE. By R O U S ~ S John Rushdoony. The Craig Press, Nutley, Sew Jersey, 1967. 134 pages. Paper. $2.50.

The title of this book is taken fro111 the opening chapter of the ~ o l u m e , .I.:,-h treats of the nlythology of science. Mythology i s the record of the :yrlis of a peop!e. Dr. Rushdoony clainls tha t ''a m y t h is the illusion of a n .,:r or a crilture whereby life a n d its origins a re interpreted. As such, the

. y h has an axiomatic t ru th to the age and i t s criterion for judging and .:icasing reality" (p. 1). In fu r the r defining what he beiieves is twentieth- .;elur!- man's concept of myth, h e clai~ils "myth is the at tempt of a culture ' i - e reon~e history, to negate the forces and ravages of time, and to make i:.; uni~erse amenable and subject to man. The myth reveals a hatred of !.':or!.. History shows movement in terms of forces beyond man and in ::d::llent over man: history rides heavily over inan, is inescapabljFeethical. '.'lrs a continuing conflict between good and evil, and elearl y shown man . ,

' ~ P r h e actor, not the playwright and director (p. I). ' ' Alan sets for him- "-: the goal to end history and i ~ l a k e himself i ts ruler. Nan endeal-ors to -:.:!"one hinlself as the new ruler of the cosmos.

The lneans employed by man to acconlplish the myth of making hinlself , . ..""solute ruler of the universe is 7nugic. which has as goal the domina- Ii of man, nature and the supernatural. F o r many modern science has

. , :'!iselected as the means to have prediction, planning and control of nlan

and his environment. universe. The author elucidate tlic charge t

(;od i s ruled out as the ruler and governor of [hC, cites oiitstanding thinkers whose statements clear!; ha t he has made ill this book.

the folloi\*ing eleven chapters, f o l l o f f i n ~ the key opening one, esani. pies are given of the false not io~ls advocated by those who have adopted [h, lnythologv of science. Atheistic e ~ o l u t i o n is a Part of the mytlloloEr

Rook f:eric~?,r _ _ __ -- 5 3

/-----

L:lther himself, arguing :!xainst the~ h u m a ~ ~ i s t Erasinus, had said: ". . . , . . in c o ~ ~ t r a s t i+-lt,h all others, have attacked the real thing,

is, the essential issue . . ." Professor McSorlev begins with a lengthy .eview of the history of the concept of the freedom of the will in Christian

:heolOgY, Attentioli is xiyen to the Biblical understanding of the freedom

2i the Then the s tudy trlrlls to St. Augustine and the scholastics ,ith emphasis on t h e thought of Thonlas Aquinas. An instructive .ha,)rer is devoted to the development of the will concept in Luther. This

introdtictory material leads the author t o what must be called heart of the matter : a discussion of Erasmrrs' De libel-o urbitt.io and

[,iltherps D e sel.1.o c / i . b i t r i ~ . Both alternatives a re judged to be inadequate. Erasnlusl definition of the freedom of the will as the power of the human ;rill bj- which man can apply hinlself toward or turn himself away from .he which lead to external salvation seenls seriously defective to I,ll.gorley (pp. 2S3, "83). Asks the author : "Instead of making it clear

will accepts grace o n l ~ - because of a previous grace enabling ;tie will to do so. does not the definition irilpiy the efficacy of God's grace depertds on man's will?" (p . 284) . He is 111ore sympathetic to Luther's ,.oncern in De sPi.1.o (1).7titt..io. "It Was . . . the same thorough Catholic C3ncel.n which m o t i ~ a t e d his attack on free will in the IJectul-es on Rosrctny. !i;p Scholastic disputations a n d the G1.1111 CZ u.n(I. ??~$ll('?l. namely, the desire ;,I uphold the absolute necessity of God's grace for evrry human act tha t has sny relevance for salvation ( ~ L ) ? I U ~ I A CO?-FI??L D P O ) and to strike down cr?r!- doctrine which places the beginning of salvation or the effectiveness ..!i Cod's grace in the power of fallen man's free will.'' (p. 3 0 4 ) . hlcSorley ,-mcludes that "It is quite correct to designate his basic Reformation .ransformation as a movement frotll an un-Catholic outlook to a Catholic ,I~I!J" ( P . 368). However. t he author continues, i n I)? servo cl~bitrio Lilther eniployed two basic arguments in defense of the unfree will: one ntressitarian, the other Diblical. McSorley maintains tha t the former .cads Luther Into a theological predicament. since it fails to explain how

zla!l alone, and not God, is t h e cause of sin. The argunlent also seems to .-are no roonl for a personal decision of faith. Interestingly enough, \jdorle!. finds the Lutheran Confessions more Catholic and theologically :b::sfving than Luther's formulation of the matter .

The author's Catholic perspective 110 doubt helped him to avoid the Protestant teniptation of isolating Luther fro111 the history of dogma. In :.:- Preface Professor Heillrich Fries discusses the aims of ecumenical 'h'.o:ogy and pictures the endeavor as a theology of understanding, a \?arch of truth an-tong colleagues, a re ta in ing of the t ruth which is to be :"l':ld even in an error, a nlaliirnalislil of inner dimensions, not a minimal- ':" and indifferentis111 to doctrine. Here 1)r. AfcSorley shines, here he '2"elldered a valuable sen-ice. One wonders, in t he light of Luther : i,.

or il-?.o?iyr'. if i t is too much to ho1)e t h a t the figure 1s-ho was once ., . -;'Sarded as sgn~bol of divisive Protestantism could also serve as one "4" basic theological concerns \vould calI 71s all to repentance. renewal. ":Id fellowshil,,

C A i P T ~ y ~ TO THE II~ORI). AIARTIS L L T H E R : I ) O C T ~ R OF S - ~ C R E ~ , s ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ l - ~ ~ . H J - A. Skevington iV00d. l17illialn R . Eerdlllans pub 1ishing ('ompany, Grand Rapids, 1969. 192 Pages. Cloth. $4.50

shades of Robert Barnes perhaps'? 11 is a curious. but llote\vorth,,. fact that Luther and Luther-studies have Illore than held their o,,-I, i;, ~ ~ ~ l ~ ~ d over the year. There i s the t ranslat ion of LntherPs n,! ,tl.i.c, ,,,.biti-io Cole, very well and s y ~ n ~ a t h e t i c a ! l y done, and rc-gub. lislled again in 1931 by AtIlerton. This was a s tandard English text

~ , ~ t h ~ ~ ' ~ famolls treatise rlrltil the excellent translation by J. I. Packer (7. K, .lnhnston (again Bri t ish) s i~cceeded it. The JIiddIeton tl.;lll;ilatjnrl

~ ~ ~ h ~ ~ . ~ c;,tlnticc,r.v. redone by Pllilil) S. Watson, is stil l unesc!el]ed to: 1 i t eral.y !.lt'. (;ordon RUDP has contr ibuted numerous pieces. To [,kc ,hesc! \ ~ p !nay now add that of A. Skevington Wood who has Succeeded adllljr;~f,l>- 1 0 dolineate Luther and Luther ' s handling of t he \vord.

\\.l,o(i divide?; his treatnlent into two main l)artS, t he titles of \v)1ict bring :.he subject n ~ a t l y into ~OCLIS. The first part , "The Bible and Luther...

acrlllaints tile reader again with Luther 's life. with special stress 011 [k.. fa(;t that \Vittenherg's humble, belie\-ing s r rvan i was the first tr:ii ..[iit)lical cosniogolitan" in over a thousand years. In God's o\vn Sacred Scriptures. Luther found a t last t h e answer to h is troubling clnrc. tlcrn. ..\Vie bekolii~il ich e i~ i en gnaedigen Gott?" I t is traversing of o:d territory for those who know Luther 's life. But enchanting paths al\v;~y.s 3 11leasl1re. especially when in good company: and Wood carrii:~ th15 off engagingly. Here and there he even Illanages to light upon soin?. thing tllr oldtinier has not seen o r known before about Luther. As :. t)lr~xr;il~hic:al skrtch it proI)oses, a n d it succeeds, to show that Lurher n.cs irtdvcd God's man of the hour and of the iiiillennium because of tlic. fa\:: that Ilr was so surely alld truly, as he himself had declared at \Vnrnk c.:il)t I i . e 1.0 the \\'ord!

It is i n the second part , "Luther a n d the Bible," where the al~:'r.ilr g ~ t s n K o f the nlradow where everybody roams and up a little further il!: the steep slopes that lead to the peaks i n Luther 's theology. There a r ? two divisi~.)t!s here. The first gets a t the mat te r of Luther as Bible in te r - 1)rtrter I hrnce h~rlnelleiitical nlethod), a s preacher, as translator. and a. rrfnrfn(ir. \\-ood makes no clailil to or iginal i ty in these chapters. ; l l ~ f l inilrcd. often indicates his sources, along with Illally direct references !O Lu:hi.r. The arrangement reminds one somewhat of Ewald PIass' escell?:;: \vol.k. 7 ' l i i . s I . /.rrtht7r. where the reader i s offered vistas in yariou!: dire(- t i ~ ~ n s of Luther's life. Rut \\;ood's assembling of details is again he!yfu! There's real "soul food" to be had , especially in a day lil;e our$ \ V ~ P E s(:holn~.sllip, excessively colllrllitted to h igher criticaI and esistenLiali~::c methods. has pretty well shot Biblical theology to pieces. "His preachi!le.' st;ltes \Vood. "\\-as never a movement f rom me11 to the t e s t ; it ivas aiiva!'-$

a mo\-emellt from the t e s t to men" (1). 8 9 ) . Worth pondering for nlorF than a l l l~nlellt . a s yo11 ask yourself, \[That lllakes me a Chri~tian. O r bond that. a Christian preacher?

It i5 the second section of P a r t 11, however, where the acthor scores

heaviest. Indeed, he almost seenls t o lift thoughts and chapters tha'

,rt,sently concern Lutheral; Christians the most. Questions like, w h a t is scripture really? w h a t is the authority of Scripture? ( the sol(,

\c.,.i,,tu,.cr about which e\-erybody likes to speak) What is the Church's

to and position before Scripture? "The Church," a s Luther says, :.,,.,, born by the word of pr011lise throngh faith, and by this same ~ ~ o r d

,lollrished and preserved. That is to say. it is the promises of God that the church, and not the Church that lllakes the promise of cod.

i'c,r the \vi\'ord of God is incon~~,arably s u l ~ r i o r to the Church, and in this the Church. being a creature, has nothing to decree, ordain, or make,

!,ut only to be decreed, ordained, and made. For who begets his own ,!arent? Who first brings for th his own maker?" (p. 123f.) Now then, if i t

ill the essential na ture of fai th that i t rests on the promises contained .,, ~ ~ l y Writ, what possible distinctioii and/or connection is there betweell re\.elation and Scripture? In general, on this present-day knotty prcblem, pi distinguishing and yet 1)rollerly relating Scripture and revelation, Wood i5 clear enough. But he does not quite succeed in showing why Luther ?,ad no probleni h e r e a s therc! ought be none for any Christian theologians -Ot identifying Holy JVrit with the revelation of God, since it is the

Spirit's book," t o use Luther's terni. That Christ was the t rue \\-ord. in a rnost preelninent way, and so God's revelation par excellence, ;ras not contradictory. nor difficult, a s far a s Luther was concerned. Christ, ;~ho was Scripture's chief content (and thus also revelation) was zlso Scsigtare's Lord and giver. The confluerlce of divine activity upon and ?!lrt.riug into the h u ~ n a n scene was finally everything, both in the incarna- :ion of our Lord into the very tissue of humanity through the Virgin Nary, ;.ntI also in the inscription of God's Word into human tongue through 11:ophets and apostles.

In his concluding chapters IVood makes a strong case for the Reform- .r's trnquestioning views concerning the divinely inspired nature of Holy iVl . i t . the unity of the Sew and Old Testanlents, and finally the Christo- ?enrricity of the whole. Certainly, in these last chapters, which get a t the :.lib of Luther's theology of the Word, the author seems to show unusual de~~rndence on citations from the St. Louis edition of Luther's works ,Saemtliche Schriften). while earlier references were usually to the '\'i.llllar or the new American edition. This would seen1 to indicate a :,+a\-!. reliance upon Lu the ran writers, particularly of the Lutheran 1-'iiurch-3Iissouri Synod, without due credit being given for sources used. Swh a strike against scholarly methodology. however, takes nothing away :?':111! the book itself, which is a n excellent and very readable work, well '!;!~rth owning.

E. F. Kluy - ~- ~

-: SL'IEXTIST ASD IIIS FAITH. By Gordon L. Glegg. Zondervan Pub- lishing House, Grand Rapids, 1969. 59 pages. Paperback. No price glren.

THE CHALLENGE OF THE CHURCH. provocative Discussions of Vital .\rodern Issues. By S. BI. Lockridge. Zondervan, Grand Rapids, 1969. ljl Pages. Paperback. No price given.

"It was no? as s i r~iple as His enemies illlaxine,'' writes Glegg of Ih:, mean ing of Christ's mission. "They had i~u r sued h im to the Cross and t h a i was t h e end of him, they thought. Actually it was the other way round, iiJr t he Son of God was hot-foot on t h e t rack of the human race. They t h a t t hey were hounding Him to t i i s death, but it was He that \ras su ing them. In His death H e found US all a t last. He gathered up i n a r m s t h e sheep tha t were lost and redeemed t h e hole world" ( I ) . 2; Glegg, a ranking scientist in Britain. a t ta ins , in short. scoi)e, a tellillg apoio getic fo r the Christian faith, for the l)owi?r of ilrayer. for divine creatinE Curiously, while he does not doubt in t he least Scripture's at1thority historical accuracy in connection with Christ's mirnclrs, he al)parenll! si.e> no reason to support creation in ternls of t he G P T I C S ~ S account. Very frank;:. however, he contends t ha t "if you a r e a Christan you will a u t o n ~ a ~ l ~ ~ i ; ~ select t he scientific theory of special creation" (11. 4 3 ) . The book was F.:.: published in England in 1961 by St . Andrew Press , Edinburgh. under ti t le, T h e (,'A?-ist of ScAience. Zondervan does a favor by again n ~ a k i n ~ available. The foreword in the new edition is by Billy Graham.

T h e second of these two small paperbacks is in no way related i n s r y ; ~ , format , or content to the first, except t ha t i t , too. is a n eloquent \\.irni:.$ for t h e Christian faith. Lockridge is pas tor of Calvary Baptist Church. s,!: Diego, a large Negro congregation. Described as n highly gifted and sor:zh; a f te r speaker for special occasions, he easily makes a believer of tile read;:; with h i s little book. These "discussions," a s they a r e dnbbed on the boo!;'^ cover. a r e apparently all sernlons or inspiratiollal addresses delivert:d a!ii tested by the author before various andiences. JVithout question Lorkr~dp. is a top-drawer when i t conles to eloquent, rhetorical prowess and appta! :i these ser l~lons a re representative. Theologically there a r e weak spots- synergism and some n t i . ) . 5 1 i 7 ~ ~ C O ~ I I ~ ) O . Y ~ ~ ? ! ~ J I on justification and sanctirii:~. tion. Hut having straightened these out the Llitheran ljreacher call f : ,6 good pickings here for trenchant, effective messages. Conln~itted to Scrii:. t u r e a n d its authority Lockridge knows how to make the message r i n .~ o:;: H i s sermon on Jonah ("Absent Without Leave" or AIVOL) is a good i.:!i.- in point. "I believe in this account," he says. "In fact, I swallow the \vhn i - Bible, cover and ail." There's no doubting where he s tands on the I31hli ;.: t he W70rd of God. A l i t t le beauty for the bargain hunters in i)reaeh::: power!

E, I,-, Kill!!

IVHES DEATH TAKES A FATHER. B y Gladys Kooiman. Baker zl'i'i IIouse. Grand Rapids, 1968. 171 pages. Cloth, $3.96.

She is i~robably the no st forgotten person in our society and. like]! il: Illany cases. even in our churches. She i s usually unobstrusive, keep= herself , and, a s the pastor sees her, a t tends church regularly and see!!l> cc haye a close relationship with the Lord. \vhy be concerned about he:: i i r - cause he r problelns a r e s o trying tha t s h e could just a s easily thrO\v i;'jd overboard, and we'd never know why. S h e is a widow.

T h i s is a book which gets to t he hea r t of those problems, written ;'!'

,,.olllm ,,rho espe!'ienc~d them herself. Gladys Kooiinan, who n o , ~ li\res on i;lll,ll far111 neal- M'aul)un. \\'isconsill, was left alone with a young fa11lily

2 - eiyht childrell \~l lcl l he!. husband died folio\\-ing a year long series of

iieart attacks. I t is to ou r benefit that she is so able to write open]? a n d ,,,,sonally about her i nne r l l l o~ t feelings. feelings which are f a r I*rmoved ;rnIll those of the pastor as a Inan.

The value of this book for the parish Ilastor is that it can help hiill dr\.elop vicariously an en1l)athy \\.it11 \\ridows in his own congregation and ;,,prfully to hell, then1 through the extrenlely trollbled waters which they and their children traJrerSe.

~t is almost enough just to catch a glimpse of the heightened emotion o;sociated with such seelningly lit t le things as a pair of empty slippers. a .L.

tire which needs to be fixed. going fishing with the youngsters. a re- cur.rillg dream of one's husband and aching. for his love and the fnlfil]ment oh[ained through the sexual relationship, the concept of "neverntss" (h is iofitsteg, smile, caress. and voice will 71 ezer conle back), no visitors daq- .itpr day and feeling tha t peorlle don't care, not being invited to the usual zl:lan-,,-oman gatherings anymore, being told "You're doing fine," and not ii.rling fine a t all.

\ye know about the grief work which the bereaved nus st go through. i;ut feeling it personally through the writing of Gladys Kooinlan is a tirep]!. moving experience. An added benefit of reading 117hc71 Deatlr Tak(

Biblical tlleology in presentirig a pat tern of instruction addressed couples thelllselves. They do what semis to 2 good job. There are esj,-- cially t w o reasons why I make this juclgulflnt.

F i r s t , the Biblical base is ~0: id ly atf;.rmt!d ill the illtroduction i n brief explanation of the doctrines of creation f l~ar t icu lar reference r,, I,:, creation of male and female) , sin ("A11 have sinn6.d and come short of r!le lory of (;od." "things do g o wrong" iu tile lllaritai relationship). and generation (there is a power which enables peollle to be redeenled ire::, hoyplessness). A!though these doctrines may not be applied as s;:i,. cifically and a,)l>ro~riaiely a s one might wish ( e -g . , :here is a lived for

still greater reliance upon the Holy Spir i t a s being the ~ h a ~ i g e - a ~ e n ~ ,\.ithi:: o~ l e se l f ) , there is enough valid inter1)retation and al)l)lic!ation to ellable :!:, ~ a s t o r - r e a d e r to respect the liiateriais and to nlnke some use ot t]letll,

It is ~ , ~ r s o n a l l y fulfilling as a Llrtheran to read the brief ~ . e f t l l . ~ ~ ~ ~ , ~ [, original s in and its reflection in Luther 's concellt of si?,l~tl irtst ir ,~ r / I ~ I [ o , - . which the authors hare thoilght of. perhal)s intnitivelv, as tb!t. Christian-sinner colllbination. T-Io\\-ever. the i r briefly llresented intpllri,- of having t h ~ liinrital couple see theniselves a s having done wronx 2s ,.;!: llers. \\-bile being recipients of God's grace, does not do coxnpletely fu1: Ic.. tice to Luther 's al)tly formed phrase a s d e r i ~ r d from the \\-ord. and :',-.. a s its use for Christian peol~le can b~ detailed.

Srcond, tile authors s ta te a very unique prrrj)ose of their hook

In t h i s book we hope to make you a rrll~ch better diagnostician, or. ;: you will, a niuch better practitioner t han you a re now. You shollld a!?, beco~ile a inuch better therapist and should be able t o listen t o yi;::. boss, to your wife or hnsband, to your children or neighbor. and behi,:.. in such a way that you can really help that other pc.rsoll (1). 2 5 1

That 111-ofessional counselors will recognize the validity of a spouse's a s that of a "therapist," even in t he function of listening. has b ~ e n ;I lo;:; t ime in c o m i n ~ . There is no reason tha t nien and wonlen cannot be rrai::.;! even over a short peribd of time, to be enlpathic listeners and com1111:r:- cators. Th i s characteristic, it appears to me, is so important for a r w : . functioning marital relationship tha t pastors should adapt it s~eciticniiy r . their form of pre-marital counseling. P u t t h i s characteristic together w!:;'. love a n d genuineness, which the au thors of this book also refer 10. arid ;: fourth. not definitely alluded to, the skill of evangelical c:onfrontation. ; . I ' capable o f being learned especially in a Christian atnlosyh~re. and :hi-: n-ould be a still better program of support for the Christian marriage.

Another extremely useful, and Biblical. concept, tha t of change. i:: c:: : - phasized by JIcFarland and Burton. Husband and wife should p.\11i.7i change in themselves a s well as in their spouse. and be willing and resd!. :, cope w i t h it. Although human na tu re remains sinful, there are chanw ;:. t he outward fornls as t he person matnres , just as there is growth in S:{fi''' fication in the life of the Christian.

Sonle of the parts of the theory of communica t io~~ behavior s ~ t s t . ~ ~ ~ ? ~ for consideration by the group rnelllbers t o help then1 know thernsel~fs 2nd in the i r '.therapy" could probably be more simply, syste~llatically, and i-f

fectively stated in the general semantic fornl of the ladder of abstracti

This book as a \~!lo!e Call likely bring sonle nen- insights to any reader, :lerry or lay . a ~ l d gcnerate some helpful ideas for use in a parish counsel- :,., ..'.- progralll.

A llell 3.0 i r .cx

i o~-p d' ETAT. X practieai Handbook. By Edward Lutt\tcak. _$ifred A. ~ 1 1 f i ~ f . S e w Tork. 1969. 209 pages. Cloth. S o price given.

Edward Luttw-ak was born in Arad. Transylvania, in 1913. was edu- in Italy and Er i ta in . has worked in Eastern and \Vestern Europe.

ytlrth Africa. and the Middle East .

The handbook covers t h e coups d' ;tat of recent history. 111aking a .~.~:ol:gh ... study of the reasons for their success o r failure. Lutt\\;ak l is ts

as won. .51 half a n d half. 146 lost. 57 inconclusive. 21 as conflict :ontinr~ing.

.~mong the important considerations in the success of a coup the au- :i;or lists the loration of t h e troops, the nature of the politicaI center of ;i:? target state. t he independence of the s tate from L foreign power. the .,nlited politicai participation of t he population, etc. An excellent ailalpsis .ild icsight into t he cu r r en t conditions in many parts of the world is of- :,rrd. The handbook can. of course, be equally helpful to the conspirators .:i~d to the establishnient. T h e d i s e s t ab l i sh~~~en ta r i ans will gain much in :tc!iniqr~e and judgn~ent , a n d antidisestablishnlentarians will be forearmed :.. !hr recognition of the weaknesses of t he state.

Since the cry of politicking in churches has keen heard through the ynturies. a book on the "Coup d'Eglise" is overdue. Coup and countercoup - , ~ \ r t>een a norinal human experience. perhaps conforniing to the law of ::'Lure that every action i s acconlpanied by its corres1)onding and equal :cacrion. Thus resistance is na tura l in an age of ardent ecu~rlenis~il without :iieoiogical soundness, a defensive coup against a slow-infiltration alloeosis. .i drnlocratic body is an easy mark for all manner of duck hunting. espe- : a l l y a church geared t o evangelical exhortations and t he acceptance of :.nlhuriry. Co~iiparisons between church life and national life h a w been ::+-fluent in recent years. Perhaps a re turn to conservatism in a world :$fir :o pot is a nornlal reaction i n t he las t third of a century. But con- >.'rvatism must not become such centralization of command that i ts media srt!- only its propaganda, and t ha t all resistance is "reactionary." T h e ;!>!or? of the churches i n modern times has not been written.

O t t o Stc1klke

% E ~ - E ~ I S T E S T I A L I S ~ I . T h e Spir i tual Decline of the West. BY Lit-sen Chang. Presbyterian a n d Reformed Publishing Co., Kutley, x. J., 1969. 25.1 Pages. Cloth. $5.95.

This is a five-star book, strongly recommended to those interested i n . ,\ '.* 3'" long-hair religion, Zen, drngs, cur ren t trends in religion, Chris t ian

i P ~ i o ~ e t i c ~ , etc.

The author was a founder and !)resident of Kiang-Sail ~ n i \ - e r s i t v . I Mainland China, pronloted a revival nlol-ement of oriental religions, found Christ in India 011 a lecture t o n r ailried il l t h e ol~posite direction, Ijr Chang colllpares himself with Paul on the way t.0 1)amascus. Before conversion he was truly a n Oriental of the Orientals and a Zen of the z2:,

Dr. Chang covers the waterfront of 111odern philosophical and religir,us developments, leaving hardIy a n author in the l ~ o d e r n dialog The "God is dead" movement is traced to the French Revolution. from Schleiernlacher to Ritschl can only lead to Buddhism. ;\Iodrrn has lost all metaphysical certainties. A sellsate ~ultu1.e call onlp add grea:~: force to the threat of a Illore stuperldous catastrophe. Freudian -. has beconle dearer than the Gospel. The trend is toward rejection tb6 faith and turning inward for spiritual discovery. the or it?^ of Zen are seizer; upon because it cIaims tha t it call reduce the tension of all opl)osire5 5: leaping above them. Alan Watts, John A. T . Robinson. Paul Tillich, Thoillas J. J. Altizer a r e cited a s prophets of t he sanle idea. Carl Jun: :. quoted: The great neurosis of our tiirle is emptiness. The beatnik esca:es froin nothing to nothing. Dr. Chang writes from experience that Zen is h i l utter fraud, a pseudo-escape, a technique for achieving a mental breakd(!>,~:, "Satori" is sirriply the final critical collapse. This uon-religion is the "clpi?.:; of the peol~le." with and without drugs. Note 5 , page 2 1 lists drugs ir: !:sr in various countries. In "Satori" all t h a t happens is r ight : it is an esn;:c.- tion which lcves God and the devi!, t ru th and heresy, beyond all tensic:;

and antitheses. We have with 11s the menace of a new dark age. F o r those who need to understand the new breed of cornpararive r;::~

gion trained college stodent, th is book is a must. Dr. Chang offers rllr 0!11:- gossi1)le antidote, the life in Christ, with passion and conviction.

O t t o Xttrlrli,,

p.hnl.r 11.7011t1 With Preacninu ~ ' o ~ ( L Y . -41 Martin. The Banner of Truth Trust, London. 196!), ":I p a g e . 1 / 6 sh Paper.

Eo,,,a,l.q, ;I ~ i ~ c s ! o.f I:~:fo,.mcd Comme)lt . BY Geoffrey B. Wilson. The Banner of T r u t h ~ , . ~ ~ t , ~or ldon . 1969. ( o r Pnritall P~~bl icat ions , Inc.. P. 0. B~~ 652, car1ile, pe.) ?,g Paper. 81.25.

Great I~t teres t . BY Willian~ Guthrie. The Banner of Truth Trust, : r.(

1969. 20; pas-. Paper. 5sh. ... ,;od ls (;,,d. B, Richard F.d\viil B o e ~ i s . Cuncordia Publishing House, st. ~ ~ ~ i ~ , 1968. ' - 100 page . ('loth. 81.50.

;,,,! i.,, .-l"e o j Athvisni. BY S. Paul Schilling. Abingdon Press, Nashville and N e w ,-,,,.k. 196'1. 239 pages. Cloth. 85.50. .-. -.

ic,i t;clrthls I I O C : ) . ~ ~ ~ C oj Elt,cl io?~. b y William John Hausrnann. Philosophical I,ibrary, x, yo&. 1:OIL. BY Al-thur E. Graf. A Bible Study Guide on the Dedicated Life. rait,h publications, Jeiferson City, Mo., 1969. 11 pages. Paper. $..lo.

U.ciii,l!r Tnll;i?~g w i th God. BY Arthur E. Graf. Faith Publications, Jeffelson City. xo.. 196:). 1 7 4 pages. Cloth. $3.95. :.,I.~:,,,, altrl the Ilible. I ~ Y Gerald A. Larue. Baker Book House. Grand Rapids, 1969. 86 ., -

nacs. Paper. $1.93. , - .~-b6(,1tiulism nnd f h f . -Veto Christia?titv. By Har ry W. Barnitz. The Philosophical Li- ., -

k,rarv, Xew York, 1960. 509 pages. Cloth. $10.00. - - . Th; pTnciicnl :Mnssa

Facing the I s~u< , s . Contemporary Discussion Series. BY Willian-1 J. Krutza and Phiiiic, p. ~ i ~ i ~ ~ ~ . Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, 1969. 119 Pages. Paper. 81.25.

Riches in Romctns. By Harper Shannon- Broadman Prgs, 1969. 95 Paper . $1.50.

~h~ Church in Gzpsrimcnt. BY Rudigel Keitz. Abinzdon Press, Nashville, 1068, 2r,c, pazes. Cloth. $4.75.

In searell of Fo,d&ttions. BY Thomas A. Lawford- Ahinsdon Press, h'ash\-i]le, 19C:,. 319 pages. Cloth. $6.95.

~h~ Imar/e of itfan in C. S. Lewis. BY William Luther White. A b i n ~ d o n Press, N ~ . ~ ~ ~ ~ , ~ 1969.' 239 pages. Cloth. $5.95.

The Synoptic Gospels. A ConunentarY for Teachers and Students. By D. B, J, bell. ~h~ Seabun Press, New York. 1969. 166 Pages. Paper. $2.25.

hfulLi-,vedk Worship. Myron B. Bloy, Jr.. Editor. The Seabur,, Press, New york. ::,qL, 144 pages. Paper. $2.95.

The Theologieczl Fou.hdafiola o f Law. BY Jacques Ellul. The Seabury Prgs, xe\, I - ~ . ~ , 19t;9. 140 pages. Paper. $1.95.

Ttic Structure of Awareness. By Thwmas C. Oden. Abinzclon Press, Nahville, 1965, z r - paees. Cloth. $6.50.

~~t Ll,ve Guick: you. Program Manual. By The Rev. Edward J. Hales. Louis xe;i,,-,, Co.. Inc. Philadelphia, 1969. 63 pages. Papel.. No price given.

The J j ig Stcll F o ~ w a r d . Mu?tual. By The Rev. Waldo J. We]-ning. 1-ouis Neibacrr c . ~ Jnc., Jenkintown, Pa., 1969. 42 pages Paper. No price given.

Whcrr: w fIisto.p, Going? By John Warwick Motitgomery. Zondervan Publishinl 1 1 ~ ~ ~ , Grand Rapids, 1969. 250 pages. Cloth. $5.95.

The Pzi?,cholo!/!l of Christian Experience. By C u r r ~ . Mavis. Zondervan Pul,lishing s , , , ,~~, 1969. 155 pages. Paper. NO price fiven.

Kfier.tive Bible Study. A Guide to Sixteen Methods. BY Ho-ward Vos. Zondervan P:.~!.::L,. inr: House. Crlrnd Rapids, 1969. 224 pages. Paper. No prlce given.

Inspirut&wa and Canonicity of the Bible. BY R. Laird Harris. Zondervan Pul,lishinr Hr,;i,. Grand Rapids. 1969. 316 pages. Paper. No price given.

Car,ti?,c to the Word. By A. Skevington Wood. Wm. B. Eerdmans publish in^ C ~ r , r n ~ ~ - . ; Grand Rapids, 1969. 192 pages. Cloth. 34.50.

Not Made j-or Dc,feet. By Douglas Hall. Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapid?. :qj$. 10% papes. Paper. $1.95.

Reyond the Shadows. By Eileen Mitson. Zondel-van Publishing House, Grand Rapids. 11.55. 127 pages. Paper. $1.50.

Guidin!) Teen-Anrrs to Maturity. By J. H. Waterink. Trans. by Betty Vredevoord. %c- - dervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids. 1969. 144 pages. Cloth $3.50.

Pzrrple Vwlct Squish. By David Wilkerson. Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Ray.,:se, St. I,ouis, 1969. 90 pages. Paper. $2.00.

0 C h ~ r c h Au-.ake. By Robert A. Simmons. The Christopher Publishing House. Scr:h Quincy. Mass.. 1969. 152 pages. Cloth. $3.95.